WHRC RAIL NEWS PAGES

April 30, 1971
was the last time the City of Janesville, WI seen passenger rail service.
A train called the Varsity, which departed at 8:30 p.m. 29 years ago,
served the once active Midwest rail hub.

Amtrak has
brought back passenger train service to Janesville. Starting Saturday,
April 15th, the "Lake Country Limited" will depart Janesville
Monday through Friday at 6 a.m. and will be scheduled to arrive in Glenview,
Ill., at 8:50 a.m. and in Chicago at 9:20 a.m.

The train will
depart Janesville on weekends and holidays at 6:15 a.m., arrive in Glenview
at 8:35 a.m. and arrive in Chicago at 9:05 a.m.

For the return
trip to Janesville, the northbound Lake Country Limited will depart
Chicago at 8:15 p.m. seven days a week and will arrive in Glenview at
8:39 p.m. and in Janesville at 11:05 p.m.

Gov. Tommy Thompson
announced Tuesday morning that Amtrak will begin providing one round-trip
daily train to carry passengers between Janesville and downtown Chicago.

Cost of a one-way
ticket will be $22. Customers can call 1-800-USA-RAIL to make a reservation.
The planned Janesville station would be on the city's far east side
near the intersection of South Wright Road (County J) and East Delavan
Drive (County O). Wisconsin & Southern Railroad Co. has property and
an unused rail siding there making this an ideal location.

Though Amtrak
will be responsible for the service, the trains will run on track leased
by Wisconsin & Southern Railroad; Metra, the Chicago commuter rail system;
and I&M Rail Link.

The short-line
railroad already has begun improving the track and plans to install
lighting, a public telephone and a shelter, David Mumma, Janesville
transit director, wrote in a memo. A parking lot and station platform
also would have to be built.

Wisconsin &
Southern is doing the work at its own expense, Mumma added.

The city is
concerned because the train is not scheduled to stop downtown and Janesville
residents will need transportation to get to the train stop. He said
he was told that Amtrak wants to avoid the 20 extra minutes it would
take to have the train arrive in or depart from downtown Janesville
because of grade crossings, pedestrians and congestion.

Amtrak also
is considering adding a stop in Walworth, pending upgrades to the station
there, according to the governor's announcement.

"Wisconsin is
at the center of Amtrak's aggressive growth plans," said Thompson, who
also is chairman of the Amtrak board of directors. "This new service
provides nationwide access by rail not only for passengers in the Janesville
area but for the entire business community in southern Wisconsin."

Besides passengers,
the train also will carry mail and express freight between Janesville
and Chicago. Freight has been considered the crucial component of renewed
passenger service because Amtrak can haul freight only with its passenger
trains.

The new service
is the first route to be introduced by Amtrak as part of its network
growth strategy announced earlier this year by Thompson.